Families In Need cruise in is Saturday

Area classic car owners are invited to bring their vehicles out of hibernation Saturday as the local group Families In Need hosts its spring cruise-in.

The biannual event serves as a fundraiser for the group, with proceeds going toward helping area families who are experiencing hardship.

The spring cruise-in will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in a large open field alongside NC Highway 89 East (Westfield Road) in the Westfield community. The site is located 7 miles from Mount Airy and 1/8-mile from Watson’s Used Cars. Signs are posted to identify the location.

Owners of classic vehicles of all types, including but not limited to cars, trucks, tractors and motorcycles, are invited to the free show. Vehicles will be registered at no charge as they arrive, beginning in the morning and continuing throughout the day.

Those who don’t own a classic car are also invited out to admire the vehicles and to enjoy a variety of planned activities including food, music, raffles and door prize drawings.

The band “The Shindiggers,” featuring popular local musicians Hersie McMillian, Johnny Dearmin and Wendy Dearmin, will be performing throughout the event.

Barbecue meals will be available along with hamburgers and hot dogs with all the fixings. Desserts will also be available for purchase.

A pair of drawings will be held with tickets to be sold throughout the event, leading up to an end-of-day giveaway. The featured raffle will offer a top prize of a John Deere riding mower. Other prizes will include a Stihl weed trimmer and a Stihl leaf blower.

Tickets will also be offered throughout the day for entry into a 50/50 cash drawing.

The cruise-ins have become the group’s signature fundraising event in recent years, with one held each spring and fall.

According to group representative Grant Tilley, proceeds from the day will go toward helping area residents with need.

“We’ve helped families in Surry and Stokes counties who needed assistance with heating oil, power bills or medical expenses,” Tilley explained. “We help wherever we see a need. And at Christmas we provide toys, clothing and school supplies to 40 area children with need.”

For more information, Tilley can be reached at 351-4235.

In the event of rain on Saturday, the cruise-in will take place from 1-5 on Sunday afternoon.

ast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;color:#222222;background:white’>“This is good for the scouts and good for the town,” he explained. ”The boys really enjoy it and everybody is appreciative of their efforts. We had store owners and people who were downtown walking or shopping coming up and telling us how much they appreciated us doing this.”

“And it provides a good, inexpensive service project for the scouts. It’s an opportunity for them to give back to their community.”